An axel to grind
Every four years, our vocabulary expands, as we (re)learn what a camber is, and the difference between a triple axel and a triple lutz.
Yes, it's Winter Olympics time, that quadrennial occasion to get a little more "wordy wise." Beyond knowing what these terms mean, we can afford ourselves a lesson in etymology.
The skating leaps, for example, are named after their originators, Axel Paulsen and Alois Lutz. (Not to be a consistency Luddite, but don'tcha kinda wish they had stuck with first names and made it a triple Alois?)
Bobsledders dread both the "omega" (a turn from 180 to 270 degrees, from the Greek letter it resembles) and the "kriesel" (a turn of 270-plus degrees, from the German word for circle).
Ski jumpers move from the pre-takeoff "egg position" (crunched with the head lower than the back) to the midair "airfoil position" (motionless, torso almost touching the skis).
Alpine skiers, meanwhile, seem to have a food fetish when it comes to snow, with such descriptors as "mashed potatoes" (wet and lumpy), "corn" (small, roundish kernels) and "crud" (varying consistencies).
But when it comes to lingo, curling is king. Here we hear the likes of "biter" (a stone that barely touches the outside of the 12-foot ring, or "the house"), "hogger" (a shot that comes to rest short of or on the far hog line and is removed from play) and of course the much-coveted "wicky wacky woo" (a shot that bounces off two or more stones and comes to rest in a very advantageous position).
When such a shot occurs, expect fans in Vancouver to go "Wicky wacky woo hoo!" Especially if they're Aussies.
